McFly Hunger Games
by imnemocomeandfindme
Summary: The title says it all really. McFly are in the Hunger Games! Written in 3rd person but mostly from Tom's perspective. If you want to know what each district does, or aren't that familiar with the hunger games in general, then this will help: thehungergames./wiki/Panem . I love getting reviews, even if I can't reply! Enjoy!
1. Becoming a tribute

Tom Fletcher stands stock still, waiting for the name to be called out while he stands in the crowd of boys section. The girls are all in a pen to the right, and they all stand facing a stage in front of the justice building in the square. On the stage is a ridiculous man with half his body tattooed in swirling orange designs, and he is putting his hand into a large glass bowl full of boy's names. The girl tribute has already been chosen, and stands trembling on the stage, as the man with the tattoos unfolds the piece of paper theatrically.

"And the male tribute for District 11 is..." he begins, and all Tom can do is squeeze his eyes shut and think _'Please not me, please not me, please not me'_.

But he hears his name, sort of fuzzy, like someone covered the microphone in cotton wool. And then he looks up and starts walking forward when someone shoves his shoulder to get to the stage, so even though he feels numb, he starts moving forward, because he knows he has to. he has no choice.

No one will volunteer. They are so poor here no one can train, and because their district is only really agriculture, there isn't much useful knowledge he can take into the games.

It takes an age to get to the stage, but he's finally there, with everyone looking at him and the ridiculous capitol man jabbering away into the microphone as if this is all fun and great news.

And the it's over, and he's bundled into a room where he talks to his little sister, and his parents, and says he'll do his best not to be killed, but doesn't think he has the stomach to say that he can't kill anyone, that it would just be wrong. He'd rather die than take someone's life: someone who hadn't asked for this any more than he had.

But then his family are gone, and he's left alone before the peacekeepers take him to the train that will take him to the capitol, and then after that, into the hunger games.


	2. On the train

Tom has eaten the best meal of his life, but not too much or he knows he'll make himself sick. He talked to the girl from his district a little, but she was in tears and seemed to get more and more hysterical the further they got from their district, so he settled down to watch the other tributes getting picked, thinking he might as well see what he's up against.

There's the usual crowds of volunteers from Districts 1, 2 and 4. They are all muscled and athletic-looking, and seem thrilled to be a part of the games, except the boy from District 2, who looks slightly sullen at being chosen, which Tom wouldn't normally notice, but he's from a career district so it's unusual. The girl next to him looks thrilled at the opportunity, and Tom can't help but notice how beautiful she is, and what a waste it is that she will either be killed, or will end up a killer.

The other districts are much the same as usual, with a few tributes really too young to be in the competition, and it's unfair, Tom thinks, because even though he has no training or anything, he still stands a better chance than, for example, the boy from District 3, who faints on the spot when they say his name, and has to be carried up to the stage.

The only one he really notices, though, is the boy from District 7. When the name is called, he looks up, slightly startled, but like he almost expected it all along. Then one of the girls in the section starts screaming: "Not my brother! Not Danny!" and he looks round, and starts pushing through the crowd to her as peacekeepers try to get through to them too, but there are too many people around them and Danny gets to the girl just as she begins to say "I volunt.." but he punches her, hard, in the side of her head, knocking her out straight away, just before the peacekeepers get to him and pull him back. The capitol woman at the front leans forward and says, in a voice that only trembles slightly, "Did she say she wanted to volunteer?" and Danny is shaking his head and calling out "No" but the peacekeepers overpower him and push him to the ground to stop him struggling, the crowd moving back as if scared to touch them. The capitol woman decides that because she didn't finish before she was knocked out, it doesn't count, and the crowd breathes a sigh of relief. Everyone is told to go home, as Danny is pulled off to the side, still struggling, and the camera fades out to the next district just as the sister starts to come round.


	3. First day of training

It's the first day of training, and even though his mentor, Fletch, has told Tom that he needs to talk to the other tributes and make allegiances, he doesn't want to, and he doesn't want to let on how bad he is either, so he stands off to the side slightly, watching the others throw knives, start fires and jump through obstacles, feeling slightly distant.

After a while though, he catches the eye of the boy from District 7, the one he remembers from the footage he saw on the train, and the boy starts wandering over to him. He has brown hair and pale skin, freckles from the sun scattered across his face, and an easy sway to his body as he moves across to Tom. Tom doesn't move away, because that would be unnecessarily rude, and, to be honest, he's curious about this boy. He looks about the same age as Tom, maybe slightly younger, but not too much so to not be in with a chance.

"Hey," Tom says once the other boy is standing next to him, because he thinks someone should speak first so it might as well be him.

"Hi. I'm District 7; Danny," the brunette says, sticking out a hand for Tom to shake. It seems strange to Tom, but customs are different between districts and he's already had so many weird experiences since coming to the capitol it's not like he can't take this is his stride too, so he takes Danny's hand and shakes it, liking how their fingers feel together, even though it still seems a little strange.

"You're the one that hit your sister," Tom blurted out, not meaning to, but at the same time needing to know how someone could do something like that. He could never have punched his little sister.

Danny sighed, running his hands through his hair and suddenly looking less confident.

"I had to. you saw her, she was going to volunteer. It was bad enough I was going to do it, but if Vicky had been there too our parents wouldn't be able to cope. Losing both of us wouldn'tve done anyone any good."

That made sense. Stopping her from speaking so that there was less pain for everyone. It worked it was just...

"Couldn't you have stopped her without punching her?"

"Nah, once my sister decides to speak, there aint much that can stop her, and I didn't have time to think of a fancy plan; it was life or death, literally," Danny said, laughing slightly before looking sad again. "They wouldn't let me see her, or my parents before I went. Because of what I did. I didn't get to say goodbye."

"I'm sorry," Tom said, meaning it. He knew it wouldn't make the pain go away, but it might help a little at least.

"S'not your fault," Danny said, rubbing his eyes and clearing his throat before speaking again. "What you doing over here then, watching all of us?"

Tom shrugged and looked back at the other tributes. Most of them had moved on to another activity while he and Danny had been talking. "I don't feel like doing anything with everyone watching me"

"Don't worry; they're all just showing off. I don't think they're really watching each other; too busy admiring their own skills. Come do something with me, then we can look bad together," Danny said, grinning again pulling a reluctant Tom forwards, towards some kind of tracking lesson. After a few nervous glances around at the others, Tom decided Danny was probably right, and he might as well give himself a slightly better chance, especially as this one at least meant he didn't need to pick up a weapon.


	4. A confession and a plan

"I don't want to kill anyone, Dan," Tom said, sitting on his bed after another day of training with Danny, walking around together and trying out new things. He had been please with himself today, and had learned a few things he thought might be useful, but he still hadn't told Danny that he didn't think he could kill another person.

"Me neither," said Danny, without hesitation or even looking up from the cake he they had swiped from the food hall earlier. Tom took a deep breath, trying to find the words to express how he felt, without sounding like a five year old girl.

"I mean, I don't think that I could kill someone. If there was someone else about to run at me and kill me, and I had a gun or something, I don't think that I could do anything. I wouldn't want to be a killer, Dan," Tom said, aware only after he said it how his fears could sound to someone who might end up killing him in the arena in only a week or so, all the training together and late night conversations aside. Danny seemed to sense something in his voice though, and looked up, licking icing from his fingers as he did so, looking thoughtful.

"I know what you mean, and I understand, but I think it could be different when you're there, y'know?"

"I know, but I just don't think that I could do it. I've pictured myself a thousand times and I can't do it, I can't kill another human being, even to save my own life."

"Well, that settles it then," Danny says, looking determined. "I don't want to kill people if possible, and you won't anyway. I think we should be a team."

Tom snorted. "Dan, two of us who don't want to kill in an arena filled with twenty-two other people who need to kill us to save themselves. Do you realise how ridiculous we sound?"

"No, it's not, don't you see?" Danny says, looking excited now and sitting up on his heels, uneaten cake forgotten in front of him. "At the beginning, everyone's always fighting to get the best stuff, but if we just take the minimum to stay alive, and fight our way out of there, we can hide away in some forest or something, and wait it out!"

It sounds a little bit crazy, and Tom's inclined to ask Danny how in hell he thinks that this plan would work, but he wants it to so badly, he thinks maybe he can convince himself it might work, and they can get away, at least for a while, if they work together.

And so they plan together, what might be there for them to take, and how much of it they would need. Tom says they need some way of carrying and purifying water, or they'll die in a matter of days anyway. Danny wants a bow and arrows, because his friend taught him archery in the forests where they worked to fell the trees, so that could help. Tom knows that Fletch can try to raise money from the districts for them, but they are both from some of the poorest districts anyway, and no-one would be voting for a couple of boys without any way of winning, would they?


	5. Let the games begin

"You ready?" asks a man in a garish capitol uniform, ready to pull the leaver that will take Tom up into the arena on his plate. He nods, not trusting himself to speak at the moment. He tries to stop his hands shaking as he smoothes down the tribute outfit he was given a couple of hours earlier: sturdy grey trousers that look made for walking outdoors, and a plain olive green shirt, with a jacket that zips up at the front.

All of a sudden he's moving, and bright daylight is making him squint as he rises up into the arena, seeing the other tributes around him. all of them are in a big circle surrounding an unusually small pile of kit and supplies, with some of the less useful ones further out from the centre, but impressive weapons and large bags which no doubt contain valuable items are in the centre.

Tom looks around at the arena now, trying to get his bearings. It's bright and sunny, with a pleasant breeze blowing over them. They appear to be on some kind of moorland, with a marsh off in the direction of the sun, and on the other side, behind him, a forest, with big hills rising beyond it. One side drops away in a slope, and there are a couple of large objects scattered across the skyline. They look like...no, they can't be. Yes they are, there are small houses, only two as far as Tom can see, but maybe more across the slopes.

A horn sounds, telling the tributes that the countdown is about to begin, before a large '60' appears in large lettering across the sky. Tom panics as the numbers change to 59, then 58, searching for Danny's plate; the plan will be much harder if they are on opposite sides, but then he sees him, with three tributes between him on his right. Danny nods to him, and looks like he gives a smile of encouragement, but it could just be a grimace as they think of what is about to happen.

The plan is simple. Tom and Danny will go forward together, with Tom getting a few useful supplies from around the edge and Danny defending him because he's the better fighter. They hoped that most of the tributes would go for the good stuff in the middle, and leave them more alone at the edge.

The numbers in the sky change to 10, and start to blaze red as they stand out. Tom wishes he was somewhere, anywhere else other than this, but then remembers that he needs to stay here, in the present, and focus. Danny needs him to focus, and he needs to give this his best shot. He starts to scan the objects nearest to them, looking for anything that could be useful, deciding on an orange rucksack not much bigger than his head, and what looks like an aluminium water canteen a few feet away. They don't need much, and the faster they get away the more likely they are to survive.

3...2...1. A klaxon sounds, and Tom is sprinting forwards, heading straight for the orange bag. A girl from one of the other districts passes him, heading straight for the centre and barely looking at Tom as she passes; he isn't a threat to her. Tom doesn't know whether to be comforted or offended by this, but he falls a second later, losing focus and forgetting to look where he's going. Within seconds, strong hands grab his jacket and pull him up, and Tom's about to panic, before he turns and sees it's Danny. He carries on then, grabbing whatever's nearest, trying not to stumble. When he's got as much as he thinks they can get away with, he looks round to see Danny pushing the boy from District nine away from them, so that he stumbles backwards into a girl from District five who turns around with a knife. Before Tom can react though, Danny spins him round and pushes him towards the forest, picking up something shiny from the ground himself before they start running, checking behind them for anyone following, but trying not to look at the bloodbath behind them.

They get away into the trees, but keep running until neither of them can continue, slowing to a walk as the ground starts to rise under their feet. They haven't heard anything coming for them for a while now, so they think it's safe, or at least, safe enough to slow down. Wordlessly, they turn so that they're walking along the bottom of the hill, looking for a good place to stop. Eventually, they come to a large old tree, with branches that start a way above their heads, but which Danny could definitely climb, but with his help Tom could too.

They drop their supplies on the ground, finally able to work out what they have. Danny got a knife, a sturdy looking thing with a slightly serrated blade. Tom got the water canteen, which looks like it could hold enough for two people to live on for a couple of days, and some kind of tablets in it which Tom suggests could be purifiers. In the bag, there's a black plastic sheet, and a length of rope the thickness of Tom's thumb, about three times as long as he is tall. Apart from the bag, there's a heavy silver packet which turns out to have dried fruit in it, and another, smaller knife.

"Not a bad haul," Danny says, when they've finished going through it. And Tom agrees. It could have been much worse. At least they're still alive. For now.


	6. A night watch

Tom yawns, rubbing his eyes in the darkness. Danny is asleep on a wide, flat branch next to him, while Tom keeps watch. The advantage of having two people is that there can always be a pair of eyes looking out for you, so you don't have to worry about being caught in your sleep. At least they have an idea of how many there are to fight; six tributes died trying to get supplies at the start, one of them the boy Danny pushed off them, and since then the cannon signalling that someone else had died has gone off once. That made seventeen of them left in the area.

Suddenly, there's a rustle that doesn't sound like it was just the wind, and Tom sits up straighter, straining to see in the dark. The tree they are in is fairly big and they are quite high up, so he doesn't think they'll be seen, but still, better to know what's out there.

After a minute, five or so tributes wander into view below him, clearly the elite gang of the best tributes that always band together to hunt the weaker ones. Tom spots the boy from District two, the one that looked less than enthusiastic at being chosen, in the group, and sees that from his side, the boy has what looks like a lightening shaped scar in his hair. This barely registers before the boy turns his head, and Tom is sure that he has been seen, but then the boy looks away again and maybe it was just how the shadows fell that made it look like the boy saw him.

"Anyone see anything?" asks the boy at the front, not bothering to be quiet. They don't need to worry about being heard; if anyone comes after them, it only means that they don't have to hunt them down later.

"Nope. Maybe we should go south again," says the boy with the lightening scar, facing the rest of the group again, letting Tom breathe a silent sigh of relief.

"Let's go then. You can bring up the rear Haz," says a girl with a wicked looking spear in one hand. They walk away, the brunette with the lightening scar at the back. Tom could have sworn that he glanced back into the tree where he and Danny were, but 'Haz' doesn't say anything to the group, so he must have been wrong.

He settles back against the tree. Another hour at least until he wakes Danny and gets to sleep, so he might as well get comfortable.


	7. A new teammate

It has been a week since the hunger games started, and Tom and Danny are getting worn out. They found a river, so have plenty of water, but food has been an issue. They managed to make a bow for Danny from a branch using the knives they had, and untwisting the rope to string the bow, but the arrows they've tried to make are no good. Tom has got pretty decent at throwing the smaller knife, and they made a spear for Danny, but so far catching the animals they come across has been tricky. The dried fruit ran out the day before, and the foraging trips had barely turned up enough since then. Danny suggested returning to the pile of supplies where they started, to try to find any food that had been left behind, but Tom said no. It was too risky.

That was how they found themselves walking alongside the stream they took water from, trying to catch one of the fishes they had seen flash by. They both missed again, the fish far too quick, barely seen before they were gone again. Danny swears loudly, retrieving his spear and throwing himself down on the riverbank, covering his face with an arm. Tom sits down next to him, rubbing his eyes with his fists, trying not to say anything that will make either of them feel any worse than they already do. Tom looks at their surroundings, wondering how long they can last like this, until someone finds them.

Suddenly, there's a splash downstream, and Tom twists round so fast his neck cricks. Rubbing it, he sees a silver tail sticking out of the water, a few feet down from where he and Danny are. Danny jumps up, and practically leaps forward before Tom grabs the back of his jacket to stop him, wary of whatever killed the fish.

They step forward together, very slowly, to where they can see the fish. it looks as though it is caught in some invisible net, held in that one spot somehow with the water making it sway eerily. Danny reaches out with his spear, giving the fish a tentative prod, and gasping at the reaction. The fish jumps a little and definitely, definitely makes a little spark underwater. Tom crouches, looking for some kind of explanation, and finds it. There are two thin copper wires that blend in perfectly with the riverbed suspended in the water, with the fish caught between the two. Following the wires to the edge of the river, Tom finds them connected to some kind of plastic device, but doesn't dare touch it, worried he might get the same electric shock the unfortunate fish clearly did.

He turns round to find Danny reaching out to the fish, and hisses at him suddenly.

"Stop, Dan! You'll get zapped by the charge!"

Too late, Danny retracts his hand with a yelp, sucking his fingers and looking like a wounded animal.

"But it's the first fish we've got! we could get it somehow...aren't you hungry?"

"Yes, of course I am," Tom says, carefully pulling them both to the side and inspecting Danny's red fingers, "but someone has put this trap here."

Danny looked blankly back at him, the lack of food clearly affecting his thinking process more than Tom's. "So what? It's still food..." he said, almost longingly looking back at the fish.

"Yes, but someone is being clever and deliberately putting a trap here that catches fish, but they don't want to kill people. That thing gave you a shock, but it wasn't ever going to do more than that!" Tom said excitedly, not understanding why Danny didn't look so happy.

"So..."

Tom sighed, thanking any kind of god there might be that he had patience. "So...there's someone out there, someone who set this trap, who is thinking the same as us...someone who doesn't want to kill any more than we do! All we have to do is wait here until they come to get their stuff and ask if they want to join us!"

"Oh," Danny said, finally catching on to Tom's train of thought and getting excited. "So how should we do it then?"

"I think," Tom said, taking on the role of strategist again, "that we should wait in that tree so that we can see who it is, then we can see if we think we want them, although given that whoever it is knows how to set this up," he said, gesturing at the fish still caught between wires, "I would say it's a pretty safe bet that they would be good to be with, and I can't imagine anyone would object to some extra protection and company."

So they do as Tom suggests, climbing a tree nearby and waiting. It seems to take forever; neither of them speak in case whoever set the trap hears them and gets scared off, and they can't move around much for the same reason.

It's late afternoon, with the sun turning everything a gentle golden hue by the time anything happens. All Tom hears is a scrabbling noise, like someone trying to climb up a gravel slope. He nudges Danny, who looks like he's going to sleep, and they sit up straighter, focusing in on a bush below them which is trembling slightly. It goes still again and the sounds stop, but then, after a tense minute, one of the branches moves, and someone comes out.

It's the boy from District three. He's one of the younger ones, small and skinny, with dark blonde hair that brushes low over his eyes. Tom remembers seeing him being picked; he fainted dead on the spot when they said his name, and he was always standing a little away from the action in the training room.

Tom and Danny look at each other, and Tom nods once to tell Danny to go.

Danny launches himself out of the tree, knocking the boy over just as he reaches the riverbank, pushing him onto his back and holding him down. The boy doesn't even scream, just squirms furiously under Danny and tries to wriggle free, until Danny straddles him, sitting on his hips to get him to stay still. As Tom grabs his hands to help Danny, the boy goes still, wide-eyed and shaking, panting from his failed escape attempt and fear in every trembling breath.

For a moment the three of them stay like that, with Tom and Danny holding him down, trying to catch their breath, until eventually Tom decides they ought to clarify the situation.

"Don't worry, we're not going to kill you," he says, relaxing his grip slightly on the younger boy's wrists. It doesn't seem to sooth as much as he had hoped it would though, the boy still looks scared and deeply distrustful of them. Tom tries again: "We're not killing anyone, us two. We're just trying to survive, and we think you are too. Do you want to join us?"

This he seems to believe a little more. Tom can feel his arms relax marginally as the boy nods, gulping, still looking terrified. Tom decides they should make him more at ease.

"If we let you up, you won't run away or try to hurt us, will you?"

"No," the boy says, barely a whisper still, but Tom lets go of his hands and motions for Danny to get off him. The boy sits up, rubbing his wrists slightly and still looking wary.

"What's your name?" Tom says, trying to sound gentle as he can after just tackling the boy to the ground.

"Dougie," the boy says, slightly more confident now that he isn't being held down.

"Great. I'm Tom from District 11, and this is Danny from District 7."

"I know," Dougie says, "I saw you around during training and the film of you getting picked. Didn't you..." he trails off, looking at Danny sheepishly.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm the one that punched his sister on TV, but it was for a good reason! I needed her to stop before she volunteered!" Danny said, looking annoyed at how he has been remembered.

"Oh, sorry," Dougie says, pushing his hair back nervously and blushing. "I didn't mean to offend you, I have a sister too so I know what it's like..."

"You're from District 3 right, Dougie?" Tom says, getting to his feet again at last. "Is that how you learned to do that? How does it work?" he gestures to the fish caught between wires again.

"Yeah," Dougie says, standing too and making his way over to the river edge where the wires disappear into the ground, pushing aside a clump of moss and showing a black box with switches and a blinking red light. "This controls the power, so you can turn it off to get the fish without getting a shock yourself," at which Danny scowls at the box, as if it's it's fault his fingers are still sore. "It gets the energy from geothermal power, so it's not much, so that it doesn't make the whole river like a massive live wire, and so it doesn't hurt anyone too, of course. The fish don't sense the current, but it's just enough that if they swim into the wires, because there are two it completes the circuit and gets shocked," Dougie says, picking up the fish from the now uncharged wires, seeming more comfortable talking about what he knows.

"But how do you know how to do all this, and where did you get the wires and box and stuff?" Danny says, looking confused.

"Come on Dan," Tom laughs, "He's from District 3. Electronics and stuff...they're all taught how to build and work stuff there!"

Dougie smiles nervously, before adding "I got the stuff at the start. There was a navy bag with a lightning bolt near me, so I just grabbed that and ran." Realising Tom and Danny's blank expressions, he sighs and says, "Navy is the colour usually associated with our district, or at least what we use for our uniforms and the labels on all our containers. I had a hunch I was meant to realise that and it turned out to be right. It had a few components and so I set this up to get food. I have another one to cook it, with a stronger current. That one's solar powered."

"Well, we're glad to have you aboard," Tom says, clapping Dougie on the back and returning the tentative smile Dougie give him.

"Yeah," Danny says, "would've thought some brains and a bit of wire could get you food, eh?"


	8. Dougie's idea

It turns out that Dougie has discovered a tunnel from the bush next to his fish trap, and a cave further up the hill where he has been hiding for the past week. They follow him up in the dark, as he guides them along, knowing his way by now. Up in the cave, he shows them his solar powered cooker. It sends an intense shock through the fish, which scorches it from within. They share the fish between the three of them, and Tom passes round some of the berries they found the day before. They lean back against the rocky walls of the cave, passing round the purified water as they get to know each other. It soon emerges that Dougie is only fifteen, which is quite young for a tribute, but he tells the others (with a guilty blush) that he told the others in training he was sixteen, to seem more of a threat. It means Tom's the oldest, at any rate, as he's eighteen and Danny's seventeen.

"Well, much as I think you're fish thing is great, we need more food than this if we're going to last any length of time, and more supplies for protection and more traps and stuff," Danny says, doodling in the dirt on the floor of the cave. "Traps for food," he clarifies at Tom's raised eyebrows.

"Well, do you have any plans?" Tom sighs, letting his head fall back against the wall he's sitting against.

"Those houses we saw at the start, on those moor things... Maybe there's stuff in them?"

"Maybe. A bit too exposed though. Especially when we know that the pile of stuff from the start might still be there and is definitely closer to the cover of the forest."

They fall back into silence, thinking of other ideas, before Tom looks up, remembering the new member of their little group.

"Dougie, any ideas?"

He pulls his legs up in front of him, looking awkward with their attention focused on him.

"Well... I did think of something...before you came. I knew I couldn't fight because I'm so tiny, so I thought I'd just use what I can do already," he said, looking almost shifty, eyes darting around the walls, not looking at either of them. Suddenly he go up, and motioned for the other two to do the same. Then he pulled Danny to stand a little way from the back of the cave facing the entrance, then got Tom to come and stand facing him right behind Danny's back.

"Sorry, Danny, but could you please swear really loudly nonstop, until I tap you and tell you to stop?"

"What?" said Danny, evidently just as alarmed by Tom at the strange behaviour of Dougie. maybe he had lost it a little while he was alone.

"Please," Dougie said, looking imploringly up at Danny. "I promise I'll explain to you after Tom."

With a hefty sigh, and a glance to Tom that clearly said 'Why are we with this nutcase?' Danny turned and began to do as he was told, using an impressive vocabulary that Tom would never of guessed he possessed.

"Sorry for acting weird, but there are cameras in here, so I had to get Danny to block us out and cover the noise," Dougie explained, pulling Tom in close so he can whisper. "If we can get the surveillance kit, we don't need to go back to where we started to get stuff for me. I can use the stuff they didn't mean to give us, because it's everywhere so they can watch us anyway! We can use cameras to watch out for people coming, and wires and whatever they use to source their power for whatever we want too!"

Tom thinks that maybe Dougie is the most underrated genius in the history of the games, and definitely the first one in all of the history of tributes to think of this.

"You're amazing, Dougie! What do we need to do?"

"Well there are some cameras I've seen in the forest, some in the trees and some that can move about, so we can start there at least, but the capitol won't like it..."

"Even better. We can start tomorrow, okay?"

"Kay. Should I tell Danny now?"

Tom nods, and taps Danny on the back to say he can stop. They switch places, and Tom takes over, thinking that if the capitol did televise this, everyone would think he'd gone utterly barmy. At any rate, the capitol themselves must realise that something is going on, with such odd behaviour.

When Dougie's done explaining the plan to Danny, they organise a rota, so they all get some sleep, with Tom taking the first watch for the night. As the other two lie down at the back of the cave, he thinks maybe they might stand a chance of pulling through it together, somehow. He can believe they will survive against the careers and all the others. At least... he can if he doesn't think too much.


	9. A new arrival

The second Tom wakes up he knows something's wrong.

Last night, keeping watch, he got used to the way the other two breathe while they sleep; how Dougie's small frame rises and drops in shorter, shallower breaths, combining with the deep inhale and long exhale Tom knows so well after being with Danny for so long.

Tom keeps his eyes closed, feigning sleep, while he listens to the sounds surrounding him. He picks out Danny first, behind him, at the back of the cave. He's breathing heavily through his nose, like he does when he's frustrated but keeping it in. That could be okay; maybe he and Dougie had a fight, and now they're keeping quiet to let him sleep.

That can't be right though, because Dougie was supposed to be on watch in the morning, and from the light against his eyelids Tom knows the sun must be rising in front of him, but he can't hear Dougie in front of him. Trying to map out the cave with his ears, he tries to listen behind him, and that's Dougie, the shaking, quick, small breaths sound like when he and Danny jumped on him the day before.

But there's someone else breathing with them. Someone Tom doesn't recognise, and that. That's definitely not good. He shifts, trying to roll towards the knife he knows he put beside him when he went to bed, so that at least he can defend himself against whoever it is, but it's not there, and all he can feel is the smooth floor of their cave.

"Come on, Tom. I know you're awake. Why don't you get up so we can talk," says a voice that definitely isn't Danny or Dougie's, but Tom recognises it vaguely. It's slow and confident, and he's definitely heard it somewhere before, but he can't remember where, and they've heard so few people out here too.

He opens his eyes, though, because he doesn't know what else he can do, and then he knows where he's heard that before, because it's one of the careers. It's the boy from District 2, the one with the lightning scar down his head, and he's standing with a wicked looking sword pointing at the other two, who are both crouched at the back of the cave. Dougie looks pale, he's got his hands fisted tight in his jacket, but not quite managing to hide how they're shaking. Danny has his jaw set, his arm around Dougie, and if Tom wasn't so scared himself he might have taken a moment to admire how Danny is doing what he can to help Dougie be less scared, though he's obviously not happy himself, and they've been together for less than a day.

"Get up," the career boy repeats, and Tom obeys, stumbling to his feet, watching the other two, trying to see if anything's wrong with them, if they're hurt. All he can see is a bruise on Danny's cheek that wasn't there before, but other than that they seem to be okay.

He finally meets the other boy's gaze, and the eyes are so intense that he takes a step back instinctively, freezing again as the boy takes a step towards the others, the sword coming dangerously close to Dougie, who tries to push himself further into the wall as Danny presses him closer to his side.

"You can run if you like," says the boy, sounding totally serious, "and I won't stop you, I promise. Just know that you're leaving these two behind."

Tom takes a step back towards them, but not close enough that he would seem threatening. He doesn't know what's going on here, but it doesn't seem to make sense. Why didn't the career boy just kill them all, and not wait for him to wake up? Why would he let Tom go?

"What do you want?" Tom says, trying to keep his voice even, but needing clarification, even if it might be dangerous to speak.

"Don't you remember me? The first night... I saw you, while he was asleep," Says the boy, jerking his head in Danny's direction, and Tom does remember, how the career pack went by and the boy had looked up, but then said he had seen nothing to the others.

"You're Haz, aren't you?"

"Actually, my real name is Harry. 'Haz' is what those career idiots call me, but at least you remember me."

Well, that's even more confusing to Tom, because why would he say 'those career idiots' when he's one of them?

"I thought you'd seen us... Why didn't you say?"

"Didn't want them to kill you, obviously," Harry says, rolling his eyes like Tom's being stupid, though he supposes he could have guessed that really.

"What made you change your mind, then?"

"What do you mean?" asks Harry, his brow creasing in confusion.

"Why are you going to kill us now, when you wouldn't before?"

"Oh, sorry," Harry laughs, lowering the sword away from the other two and pushing it into his belt so it hangs by his side instead. "I'm not here to kill you. I'm here to join you."

"Pardon?" says Tom, as the others look just as confused as he does, only slightly more relaxed now that they don't have a sword pointing at them, but Tom can see Danny flexing his fingers. Harry is maybe the same height as Tom, but wrapped in muscle from head to toe. Even so, Danny is the best fighter, and now Harry's put the weapon away, Tom's worried he might attack to try to save the other two, if he thinks Harry poses a threat.

"I knew you two were together," Harry points at Tom and Danny, "and the way he acted when he was picked and how you were in the training hall made me guess you weren't made out to be killers. I didn't know about him," he raises his eyebrows at Dougie, "and no offense, but you don't look like you're up to killing anyone. Anyway, I want in."

"Why?" puts in Danny, stepping forward slightly, and Tom can't help going closer to him, so that maybe he can hold him back if he makes a jump for Harry, or help him, he hasn't decided just yet.

"Because I want to get out of here, and I don't want to kill any more than necessary to do that. I didn't ask to be here, and neither did any of you, so why would I kill you?"

"You did ask to be here though, you volunteered as a tribute!" says Tom, feeling like maybe Harry is a little bit denser than he thought at first.

"I volunteered because that's what everyone does where I come from. I never expected to actually be here, did I? Made my parents happy, but there are so many volunteers from my district I thought the odds of actually being picked were far too low to bother with. I hung out with the careers because it was automatic, and it meant I had a much better chance of surviving the initial bloodbath of this thing."

"Then why aren't you still with them, if it'll keep you alive? You have a much better chance with them than with us!" Tom can't help his curiosity, especially now that it looks like Harry really means it, but it could still be a trap.

"I couldn't do the hunting thing, like people are just sport, y'know? I was on watch two nights ago, and I knocked out the other guy who was awake, took supplies, and left to see if I could find you. My whole aim is to get out of this alive, and try not to kill anyone along the way, and I knew you weren't dead, because I hadn't seen your faces in the sky, and so I thought I could stick with you, and avoid the others, for as long as possible."

"What do you mean, 'as long as possible'?"

"Well, the game makers are going to force us together anyway if things get boring, so I thought I might as well stick with you in the meantime, and maybe win us some sympathy, and therefore some sponsors, because we will need outside help, and no offence, but you two come from some of the poorest districts in Panem," he said, looking at Tom, then Danny, "and as far as I know, District 3 isn't exactly rolling in riches, even if you're not all starving. I'm from District 2, which is probably the second richest district, so they can afford to help more."

"What does District 2 do again?" Danny says, and when Tom looks over he only seems a little tense.

"Masonary, weaponary, locomotives and peacekeepers," mutters Dougie, sounding like he's reciting something in class, and maybe that is where he learnt it.

"What? Sorry Doug, but I don't understand that first one..."

"He means," Harry says, with the air of explaining it to someone very slow, "that we build things, or make things for the capitol, including weapons, mostly guns, explosives and tasers, but also trains and all the parts that come with them, and we also train and distribute the lovely peacekeepers you have in all your own districts."

"That should be our industry," Dougie says, making his hands into fists and stepping towards Harry, who doesn't flinch or look concerned in the slightest. "We make some weapons but even though you already have all those other things you do, you still need to take our income, make our families poorer, and yourselves even richer, and you don't give a damn who it hurts along the way!"

By the time he finishes, Dougie has got to about a foot away from Harry, who hasn't moved an inch.

"You think I don't care? That no-one in my district cares? The capitol decides who does what, not us, and you know it, so don't go blaming the innocent. If we stopped working, and protested, then it wouldn't help. We would all be punished, and maybe that would mean even more work for us which would mean even less work for you. Add the fact that if they eve suspected that District 3 had had a hand in any protest we did, they would punish you for sure, and I would say that us just carrying on doing what we're told, and taking the money we earn from it, is the best way forward, wouldn't you?" Harry said, raising his eyebrows. Dougie takes a faltering step back, looking dazed, like someone just told him something undeniable that changed his world view.

"Sorry, I never thought of it that way," Dougie mutters, and backs off again to stand back next to Danny.

"So, can I stay?" Harry says, and for the first time they've heard him, he sounds just a little unsure, because they could still say that he should go, that they don't want him there after all.

Tom looks at the others, wanting them all to agree on this one. It's a big decision to make, after all.

"He would be useful, and I reckon we could use an extra body, especially if you can fight," Danny says, aiming the last part at Harry.

"We get trained with a variety of weapons and in hand to hand combat from a fairly early age, for being peacekeepers," Harry says, jiggling one leg like he just wants to know if he can stay.

"Okay," Danny says, turning back to Tom. "I say he should stay then, for now at least. But we can't let him wander off, in case..."

"In case I try to kill you all while your backs are turned, right?" Harry says, sounding sarcastic.

"Yeah, basically."

"Okay. What do you think Dougie?" Tom says, knowing he probably isn't too keen.

"If you think it's a good idea, then I'll go with it, but I agree with Danny's watching thing, at least for a few days..."

"Alright then, Harry, you can stay, just don't go all psycho on us."


	10. New supplies, and self-doubt

"You said you took supplies from the career camp; can we see what you've got?" Tom says, liking how much more relaxed and friendly Harry seems now that he knows he's been accepted.

"Oh, not much," Harry says, and starts walking out of the cave, beckoning for them to follow. Once out on the hillside the cave is on, he takes them to a nearby bush, and pulls out a bag made of some kind of thin grey material. Harry opens the drawstring at the top, and pulls out a silver bow with four or five arrows, an axe, and several knives, the smallest one wickedly fine, the largest looking like it could bring down a medium-sized tree if used with enough force. Harry takes the sword out of his belt and lays it next to the other weapons, then goes back to the bag and takes out three water canteens like the one they already have, two woolly-looking black blankets, a roll of bandages and a bag of dried meat.

"That's all I took, but I wanted to be able to carry it all, and one of the others looked like she was about to wake up, so I just took it," Harry says, stepping back and shrugging like he's disappointed with what he got, while Danny grabs the axe with the biggest grin Tom's seen since they got in the arena. Danny turns it over in his hands, and then, with speed Tom would never have expected, whips round and throw the axe, sinking it deep into a tree 50 feet from where they stand

"Whoa," Dougie says, jumping up and hugging a satisfied-looking Danny with one arm whilst jumping up and down. "That was awesome! Where'd you learn to do that?"

"Back home... we use the axes to fell the trees, and I just liked throwing them with the other kids too!"

"You're good, Danny. Really good," Harry says, walking forwards to pull the axe out of the tree, and even with all his muscles, Tom can see that it's difficult. When he gets it out, Harry hands it back to Danny and looks at the others. "So, I'm assuming from that, and his earlier display of fighting prowess that Danny is the brawn of this little outfit..."

"What earlier display?" Tom asks, not able to remember Danny actually doing anything to show his strength while Harry has been with them.

"When I arrived, Dougie was sitting looking out of the cave, so I had to jump on him so he wouldn't yell and wake you up, because I didn't know if you would give me a chance to talk. Unfortunately, he's a wriggler, and we woke up Danny just as I got him to lie still," Harry explains, looking askance at Danny.

"Yeah, they kicked me, so I jumped on him, and he hit me!" Danny grins, pointing to the bruise on his cheek, which had developed into an attractive purple colour.

"It was instinct, but I stopped after that," Harry says quickly. "Sorry, by the way, for that, but you did get me back," he says, pulling up his shirt to show his own marks up one side of his ribs.

"Then he said if we didn't keep quiet he'd kill you before you could get away, so we shut up, and you woke up about a minute after that," Dougie puts in. Tom raises his eyebrows at Harry.

"I wouldn't have actually done it, but I thought they would be more likely to respond to a threat against you rather than themselves, and it worked, to be fair. Sorry for that, too, though, I suppose."

Tom nods to show the apology is accepted, taking a moment to marvel at how Harry knew the others cared more about protecting him than thinking about themselves so quickly, while Danny laughs at the absurdity of the apology.

"So if Danny is muscles, what do you two do in this little group?" Harry says, continuing his earlier question.

"Dougie is brains," Danny says, clapping him on the back as Dougie blushes slightly.

"Not really... I just know how to do stuff..." he mumbles, looking embarrassed but pleased.

"Yeah, and you thought of that thing we were going to do today!" Danny says, enjoying the younger boy's awkwardness.

"Huh?" Harry says, looking confused. "What were you going to – "

"'Scuse us, Harry," Tom says, grabbing the other two and pulling them off out of earshot of Harry.

"Are we still doing that, now that Harry's with us?" Dougie asks, "I mean, we've said he can stay, but should we trust him to do this?"

"I think so, I mean, there aint much time, so we oughta just do it I think," Danny says, keeping his voice down so Harry can't hear.

"Yeah, but we'll want to split up, so that we can get as many as possible," Dougie mutters, a note of urgency in his voice. "I mean, I want to trust him too, but it hasn't even been an hour since he arrived and we want to go out alone with him?"

"I know what you're saying, Dougie," Tom says, feeling a little worried about what he feels they have to do, "but I also agree with Danny that we don't have much time to spare. With Harry gone, the careers might try to go after him, because he's their biggest threat now, so we want to be prepared."

"I'll go with him, and you two can go together, so if he turns nasty I have the best chance of getting away," Danny says, his voice not quite as confident as he's obviously trying to be.

Dougie says "Okay," at the same time as Tom says "No," making the other two look at him with surprise.

"I mean, if someone else attacks us, then we need a good fighter in each group, and Danny and Harry are the best. I think I should go with Harry, and you two go together." Tom sees Danny about to protest and stops him, "Really, this is better. Besides, like Harry said, Dougie's the brains, and Danny's the brawn. I'm just the guy that's with you; I'm more disposable if Harry turns out to be lying."

"Don't be stupid," Danny says, grabbing Tom's shoulder so he has to look him in the eye. "Without you, our whole peace plan would never have started, and you have common sense," Tom snorts, feeling if peace and common sense is the best they can come up with, he definitely needs to be the one risking stuff for the benefit of the group. "Seriously," Danny says, gripping him more tightly, "without you I would've walked straight into Dougie's fish trap thing, and you know where to sleep, and what's important, and who to trust!"

"Like who?" Tom asks, wondering who they've had to decide to trust except Harry, and he's still pretty undecided on that front.

"Dougie, obviously!" Danny says, shocked he has to ask, and if Tom thinks about it, it should have been obvious. Dougie gives a little wave, as if to emphasise his presence. "I was thinking we should watch him for a while at least, and he could've left that trap for people, or he could zap us with his fish cooker thing, but you decided he was good, just like that!" he clicks his fingers.

"Yeah, but that's not really useful for surviving, is it?" Tom says, making a face.

"That's the basic stuff you need before you have anything else, Tom," Dougie says, looking serious. "If you'd acted differently this morning even, then things could have gone much worse, but you were perfect."

"Yeah maybe, but – "

"No, Tom," Dougie interrupts, sounding unusually stern. "You're what keeps us together, like our leader, or team captain or whatever. We need you just as much."

"You're going with Harry," Danny says, finally releasing Tom, and beckoning Harry over, "but not because you're worth less. Because of the needing a fighter on both teams thing you said."

"What was that about?" Harry asks, finally reaching them and looking curiously at them.

"Tom just had a bit of a stress, but it's sorted now, and we have something to tell you," Dougie says seriously.

"Okay, what is it?"

"I can't explain here... come with me to the cave, and Danny and Tom can cover for us," Dougie says, leading the way back with Harry following, looking as confused as the other two probably did when they were told the plan.

"Tom," Danny says, holding him back and letting the others go ahead a bit as he lowers his voice. "Seriously, we do need you, so don't go and get yourself killed."


End file.
